Remove your shocks and give them a quick once-over with the toothbrush. I like to
break the shocks down at this point and make sure there are no leaks, make the necessary repairs, and freshen up the fluid. I also clean all the parts of the shocks the same
way I cleaned the electronics. Take the arms, bulkheads, shock towers, and steering
components o; the chassis and clean them using the glass cleaner and Pledge method. Before reassembling, inspect the hingepins and replace any bent or damaged parts.

CLEAN SLATE Now we should be down to the bare chassis, which is pretty straightforward as far as cleaning. Again, use the glass cleaner and Pledge approach or wash it in the kitchen sink. ;e same goes for the body and wing, just be sure to clean up after or su;er the consequences with your mom, wife, or roommate.

SMOOTHING OPERATOR

To clean the bearings, use a dry toothbrush, gently brush
them clean, and spin them, making sure they are in good
shape. I don’t use compressed air or motor spray here, as
that tends to push the grime deeper into the bearing, but
some prefer to spray them out. ;e best thing to do if the
bearing is that dirty is to replace it; it’s probably pretty worn
from running all that dirt in it anyway. ;is goes for any parts
that seem to be near the end of their usefulness. Part of
cleaning your car is freshening up old, worn parts.

PUT IT BACK TOGETHER

After all this hard work and cleaning, you should have a nice big shiny pile of parts
to reassemble. Even though you’ve done this a thousand times, it’s good to keep a
manual around for reference. During reassembly, be sure to inspect and replace screws
that may be starting to strip out. Give everything a quick once over during assembly to
make sure everything works properly and is nice and shiny.

FRESH DRIVETRAIN
Remove the driveline and disassemble it entirely. For ball di;s, rebuild it if it doesn’t feel smooth. On
a clean paper towel, break down the di; to a pile of parts. ;en with motor spray, clean everything
until it’s spotless. Clean the teeth on all of the gears with a clean toothbrush and check them for
any wear—if necessary, replace them. Gear di;s tend to last longer so if it’s still pretty good, just
spray WD- 40 into the opened di; and spin the gears to help break down the old residual oils. ;en,
flip everything upside down on a
towel and let it dry o; while you
grab a snack. After the di; is dry,
wipe the parts down with a rag and
clean them with motor spray to
break down any residual oil. Clean
the O-ring seals with a clean paper
towel or replace them. Finally, fill the
di; with the correct weight fluid and
reassemble your gearbox.

WRAP;UP

Well, give yourself a pat on the back because
after all that hard work, you should have the
cleanest, best-running car at the track or the
bashing grounds and everyone knows that the
cleanest vehicle is always the one to get the
most attention and runs the best; you’ll be the
envy of all your buddies too. Heck, now would
be the perfect time to shoot some pics and
send them to us. Maybe you will see your car in
the “Readers’ Rides” column!